Goodell wants implementation of new NFL fan conduct policy.

This article talks about cracking down on the fans. I really hope they never have to ban alcohol. That would just turn drinking into a stealth operation. I do agree that there are a few that get out of control and agree something should be done about them. The article does mention incidents in San Diego. Thoughts?

Once again NFL commissioner Roger Goodell seems intent on breaking with the head-in-the-sand approach of his predecessor, Paul Tagliabue.

For years as drunkenness and violence escalated at NFL stadiums the league's policy was, uh, good luck with that.

But on Thursday Goodell announced he will be issuing a fan conduct policy that will hopefully forestall the nuclear option of banning alcohol at NFL games. After all, of the many revenue streams in pro sports, can any possibly be as lucrative as the stream of domestic beer selling for $8 a cup?

"We want everyone to be able to come to our stadiums, behave properly, enjoy this experience but don't ruin it for others," said Goodell. "We will be focusing on that, including the implementation of an NFL fan conduct policy which we will have out prior to the season."

If Goodell's new policy holds franchises accountable for the conduct of their fans — the way he will now hold them financially accountable for the behavior of their players — you can bet teams will crack down in a meaningful way.

Here's a taste of what Goodell might consider improper behavior. Or perhaps this. For more disturbing images of what Goodell might define as ruining it for others go to YouTube and plug in "Raiders Chargers fight."

McAfee Coliseum in Oakland and Qualcomm Stadium in San Diego might as well be octagons for all the impromptu mixed martial arts that break out when the Bolts and Raiders throw down. But unconscionable fan behavior is not a recent development.

In 1995, when unruly Giant fans pelted the field and knocked the opposing equipment manager unconscious with ice-balls, the league might have thought it had a problem.

In 1997, when over 60 fistfights broke out at Veterans Stadium in a nationally televised game, prompting Philadelphia to assign a municipal court judge to the stadium on game days in '98, the league might have thought it had a problem.

In 2000, when that Raider fan stabbed a Charger fan, the league might have thought it had a problem.

In 2001, when Browns fans showered the field with plastic beer bottles, the league might have thought it had a problem.

In 2003, when three Charger fans beat a Jaguar fan into unconsciousness, the league might have thought it had a problem.

And on and on until Goodell inherited an almost league-wide problem.

But until now the NFL was loathe to admit that it had a drunken fan epidemic. So while it may be overdue, give Goodell credit for trying to improve his product by finally acknowledging one of its shortcomings.

Maybe Goodell decided to take action because of the collective effect of so much anti-social behavior. Or maybe it was the Mardi Gras North that broke out at Gate D in the Meadowlands last year where kids at Jets games got to witness men screaming at women to bare their breasts (and women obliging). Or maybe it was the two shootings outside the Coliseum in Oakland before and after a Raiders-Chiefs game last fall that forced his hand.

Cracking down on player misconduct has been a hallmark of the commissioner's early tenure (though Charles Grant's manslaughter charge and a shooting involving a gun owned by Marvin Harrison could not have been the offseason Goodell was hoping for after coming down hard on Pacman Jones and Chris Henry). But the fact is fans — you know, the consumers of the product — will have a lot more interaction with other fans than with the players. So Goodell's announcement is welcome news for the vast majority of football consumers who can take in a game — and, yes, even suck down a few brews — without wanting to assault anybody.

At an infamous 1999 game between the Raiders and Chargers in San Diego, Raider legends Ben Davidson and Otis Sistrunk were so appalled by the out-of-control fan violence they left the stadium. Think about that.

Davidson told the San Diego Union-Tribune after the game, "It's just a sad testament to our time."

Davidson was listed at 6-foot-8, 275 pounds in his playing days and Sistrunk at 6-4, 265.

magine how a dad might feel in those same stands with his 70-pound fourth-grade son. (One of the more chilling images in the YouTube gallery of fan violence is two middle-aged women shepherding a small boy away from the melee that had broken out around them.)

My friend Dan attended the NFC Championship game in Green Bay in his Eli Manning jersey. Not only did he emerge unscathed, he received a grudging Midwestern respect for making the trek and for the gritty performance of his team.

Check out this on how Giants fans were greeted in Green Bay. And not one woman implored to expose her breasts.

Oh, that all NFL cities could be Green Bay.

But the sad truth is that many NFL stadiums are about as family friendly as the strip clubs where the league's players so often get arrested. Goodell's fan conduct policy will be the first step to taking the violence out of the stands and parking lots and keeping it on the field where it belongs.

No alcohol served in the stadium won't be too disappointing. That's what a flask is for!!!
That will just take fun out of preseason games. Because I spend pretty much the whole second half in "Murphy's." Though the only reason I go to preseason is because it's free and I live close by. Otherwise, I wouldn't bother.

BUT... if they do something to stop tailgating, I might not renew my season tickets.

This article talks about cracking down on the fans. I really hope they never have to ban alcohol. That would just turn drinking into a stealth operation. I do agree that there are a few that get out of control and agree something should be done about them. The article does mention incidents in San Diego. Thoughts?

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Stadium security in every venue is quite able to track the offending individuals. Forfeiture of tickets for the rest of the season for a first offense, forfeiture of tickets for the next season for a second offense, a lifetime ban for the third strike. This would be imposed only upon each incidence requiring ejections or arrest before or after games. Simple warnings, gracefully accepted, wouldn't count at any time.

This article talks about cracking down on the fans. I really hope they never have to ban alcohol. That would just turn drinking into a stealth operation. I do agree that there are a few that get out of control and agree something should be done about them. The article does mention incidents in San Diego. Thoughts?

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I'd love to see something happen to the idiots that can't figure out that they are supposed to be having a good time.

We are Charger fans; we treat opposing team’s fans with respect and courtesy, the kind of respect we should expect in their stadiums. And although we may not always be treated the way we should we will always be gracious to our fellow football fans.

My best visiting experience at another stadium was Green Bay; Walt Disney could not have come up with a better backdrop for a football experience.

My worst visiting experience is of course Oakland. That dump looks like it was designed by the offspring of Adolph Hitler and a crack-addicted baboon. Raider fans act like Goth clowns on acid.

My brother has season tickets to Florida State games. He says the bars are PACKED before the game, not to mention that area is one gigantic tailgate party. So the fans are pretty lit before those games.

My wife worked/went to Univ. of Wisconsin for awhile. That stadium is right in the middle of a student reisdential area. Besides having a party at just about every house there, students will let you park on their front lawns, for a fee.

My brother has season tickets to Florida State games. He says the bars are PACKED before the game, not to mention that area is one gigantic tailgate party. So the fans are pretty lit before those games.

My wife worked/went to Univ. of Wisconsin for awhile. That stadium is right in the middle of a student reisdential area. Besides having a party at just about every house there, students will let you park on their front lawns, for a fee.

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My wife went to UW Madison and she and her roommates made their beer money by having peeps park on the lawn. They had a prime place right near Camp Randell. They had regulars that parked every game and they held the spots for them. :icon_toast:

Great school and I will prolly send my kids there in about 12 years when they are ready. We send a few $$ to the alumni fund to keep my wife's name in good standing. Admissions looks at that stuff for children who apply. :yes:

I've been to plenty of NCAA games where people were lit (myself included) - sometimes there are problems, more often not. I certainly don't condone bad behavior, but if Goodell can't handle situations like the blatant cheating by the Pats, he can KMA with his "crackdown" on fan behavior. Seems to me that this guy is just a ***** who only takes on the fights he knows he can handle & won't unearth anything too damaging to the NFL's image or hurt his cash cows.

Hooligan riots between soccer teams and wrong alcohol treatment is a problem in European stadiums. The teams have to deal with it, because you can lose money or homefield games, even when the guest fans start fighting or starting fireworks. To minimise this they build a lot of fences inside the stadiums to seperate the fans and took videotapes from the seats. So the problems went outside to railway stations or city streets were the hooligans of both sides met. The big teams in Italy, England and Germany pay socialworkers to cool down the fan groups and drive with them to awaygames.

These problems are not as strong in the US, mainly because a trip to an away game is too expensive for those trash people. At Arrowhead I've seen no fences, friendly people and only a little cheating after the Chiefs lost to the Bolts last year. When the commissioner thinks about troubles to come and how to prevent this - it is a good thing. Making it easy by only banning alcohol is not the right way. The 1920ies showed America that too much control doesn't work ("stealth bottles")and make the bad guys stronger.

Hooligan riots between soccer teams and wrong alcohol treatment is a problem in European stadiums. The teams have to deal with it, because you can lose money or homefield games, even when the guest fans start fighting or starting fireworks. To minimise this they build a lot of fences inside the stadiums to seperate the fans and took videotapes from the seats. So the problems went outside to railway stations or city streets were the hooligans of both sides met. The big teams in Italy, England and Germany pay socialworkers to cool down the fan groups and drive with them to awaygames.

These problems are not as strong in the US, mainly because a trip to an away game is too expensive for those trash people. At Arrowhead I've seen no fences, friendly people and only a little cheating after the Chiefs lost to the Bolts last year. When the commissioner thinks about troubles to come and how to prevent this - it is a good thing. Making it easy by only banning alcohol is not the right way. The 1920ies showed America that too much control doesn't work ("stealth bottles")and make the bad guys stronger.

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Stadium regs aren't as intrusive as prohibition or the insanity of the extent of our drug laws, but you are right. Teams and stadium security are quite equal to the task of weeding out the jerks, particularly if teams can be cajoled in controlling THEIR ticket holders who cause trouble in other stadiums as well as those wo misbehave in their own. I've been to soccer stadiums in South America that have moats and escape hatches built in the the fields that lead to safety tunnels.

For crying out loud. I just watched the youtube videos of the raider Charger fights etc. Whats with the raiders wanna be gangster look? The games are supposed to be for entertainment. If you want to go somewhere just to fight, get yer *** over to Iraq.

I was mad when someone behind us threw beer at a couple of Charger fans sitting in front of us. Of course we were hit too because we were in the line of fire. Of course Bronco security was lame. I think the Broncos security guys are moonlighting from Cinnabons at the mall. At 8 bucks a cup who in their right mind would throw a beer at someone?